Bluff! And We're Not Bluffing

Welcome to our first port in New Zealand.  We knew it was New Zealand due to all of the ferns. 

Today, Tuesday, we were in Bluff, NZ.  We were supposed to be in Timaru, NZ but due to the hull cleaning issue delaying us, they substituted Bluff.  We were given 2 options for our short stay there - a shuttle bus to the bigger city of Invercargill (a 30 minute ride) or to stay in the village of Bluff.  Since it was such a short stay, only about 3-1/2 hours on shore, we opted to stay in Bluff.  

I had read that Bluff oysters are reputed to be the best in the world.  Now, I am not a big oyster aficionado, but how could I pass up the best in the world?  So I did some research and found a good sounding restaurant at Stirling Point, the Oyster Cove.  The website said that reservations were essential so I booked a table.  We had to take a shuttle bus off of the pier (it's one of those working piers) and, as luck would have it, the shuttle bus took us right to Stirling Point.  And we were even able to arrange to have the shuttle bus driver pick us up at 3:00 pm.

And now for the disappointment - Bluff oysters are not in season.  Dang!  Nevertheless, we had a fine lunch of Blue Cod fish and chips and a seafood chowder in a lovely setting.

Right by the restaurant was the start of a walking path along the shore so we took about an hour stroll after lunch.

The shuttle bus driver was there precisely at 3:00 pm as advertised.  When we returned to the ship, chaos reigned at the Destinations' Desk.  We soon found out that our call into Christchurch had been cancelled due to scheduling difficulties (the monster Princess ship would be blocking our access to the pier) and Timaru was back in.  It is a bit disappointing to miss Christchurch and to see their recovery from the earthquake, we have not been to Timaru so we'll be exploring a new place.  And we had a list of a few things we wanted to do there.  So, for us, while I am sure that there are many people bitching, this will all work out!

As I said, Timaru will be new for us which brings me to today's truism: EVERYTHING THAT'S INTERESTING IS NEW

Peace and blessings,

Linda and Larry